Funeral for a Mother
by Victorian Asylum
Summary: Just a short little one-shot about Lin at Toph's funeral.


The casket was somewhere between elegant and crude. The city and most of its law abiding citizens had insisted on making it a true sight to behold, in honor of the esteemed Chief of Police and renowned metalbender.

Her daughter had thought otherwise. It wasn't that she didn't want her mother to be buried in some half-baked box. Rather, it wasn't something that her mother would want. Sure, she would do things that would draw attention. She would want to be remembered for what she did in life, not how she was buried.

As it was, the box was a polished black that gleamed in the low light. It was lined with gold around the rim of the lid, and on the top, etched in a shining yellow was the badge that she used to wear, one that Lin herself would now own. The one that had marked her as the Chief.

People were lined up by the coffin, some that Lin knew, some she didn't, all of them paying their last respects to the greatest earthbender in the world. Lin wasn't among them, not yet. She was waiting until the lines had thinned. She wanted to be the last to say goodbye to her mother.

Among the sad characters waiting she could see Uncle Aang and Aunt Katara, who were currently walking away from the casket. Katara was crying her eyes out, with good reason, just like she had at her brother's funeral.

Aang had his arm wrapped comfortingly around her shoulders, guiding her back to their seats. His head was bent low, probably saying something to his wife, but Lin caught the tell-tale gleam of tears in his eyes too. Her mother told Lin that she'd only seen Aang cry a few times, but as he grew older, it seemed like he grew out of it, like most did.

Lin herself sat rather stoically, eyes flitting about the room the settle briefly on the various objects. To anyone who didn't know her, it looked as if she was impassive, unfeeling. Like she didn't care that her only parent was going to be buried in the earth she loved so much.

But a few tell-tale signs gave her away, if you knew what you were looking for. Her shoulders were slightly slumped, drawn forward and downward, like she was having trouble holding them up. Her hands were folded neatly in her lap. Normally they would rest at her sides, or on her biceps when she crossed her arms.

Her mouth was drawn down in a slight frown, and her lower lip trembled ever so slightly. But she wasn't crying, not yet.

If seeing Toph cry was a rare sight, then seeing her daughter cry was like trying to find a grain of salt in a stack of diamonds. It wasn't that Lin didn't feel. Oh, contrary to popular belief, she felt just like the rest of them.

The simple difference was she wasn't open with her emotions. She waited until she was alone to breakdown, when it would be easy to pick up the pieces. Her mother was the only other person who she would go to in times of trouble. Though she didn't seem like the type of person, Toph was very good at giving comfort.

A light tap on Lin's shoulder woke her from her reverie, and she turned slightly to see Aang, face solemn. He nodded his head slightly in the direction of the coffin. She turned and saw that everyone had returned to their seat. Only she was left.

Rising to slightly unsteady feet, she quietly made her way down the aisle and towards the casket, fighting to keep herself together. When she got there, the face of her mother, as pale and lovely as she had always been, greeted her.

Lin was always amazed at how defenseless her mother looked in her sleep. How much her guard was let down. She didn't like the thought of her mother eternally helpless. It didn't sit well with her, but there was nothing the young woman could do about it.

"Never thought you'd be the second one to go," she said quietly, folding her hands behind her back. A habit she picked up from her mother, after seeing her do it so many times before, when she went from the slightly wild and carefree woman Lin had known at home to the rock solid and usually emotionless woman she was at work.

"You seemed like you would outlast them all." Lin continued, burning the image of the woman lying in front of her into her memory. "I figured you would end up living as long as King Boomie from Uncle Aang's stories. I guess dying young and stealing the glory seems more like you though, if I think about it."

There was so much more she wanted to say, to pour her heart out, find a new one, and leave that in the coffin as well. None of that, however, happened. She couldn't do it, not here in front of all of these people who were watching her so closely.

Instead, she settled on the simplest display of affection. Bending down, she planted a soft kiss on her mother's forehead, like the elder woman had done so many times when Lin was a child. "Goodbye for now, mother." She said as she straightened. Her eyes watered slightly, but no one ever saw.

**X X X**

**Author's Notes: **First story for the Last Airbender fandom in general. Hooray.

Watching episode nine made me curious as to how Toph died, and when. Although I didn't touch upon this in the story, this was the reason behind it. It turned out okay I guess. It seems average to me, but I had to get it out of my system. I really hope I didn't kill Lin's personality with this.


End file.
